Anti-graft laws too weak to fight corruption, says don

A university don, Prof. Taiwo Asaolu, has lamented the weakness of the nation’s anti graft laws to fight corruption in the country.

Addressing a press conference on the Management Lecture series organised by the Association of Executive MBA Students of the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, the don recommended stiffer legislation to curb the menace.

Asaolu, who is also the Coordinator of the Executive MBA Programme of the institution, said the anti-corruption legislation made in the country is meant to deal with the poor people and not those at the highest levels of government.

He described the cashless policy introduced by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) as a failure, saying that all these are “indices of a failed society.”

He said: “There is no doubt that we have leadership challenges in the country; we have weak institutions and legislation. As a nation, morally we are weak. We celebrate corruption in this country and this is where we have missed it.

“Even, culturally we celebrate corruption because when you give chieftaincy titles to suspects, it gives different impression. In summary, corruption is the cause of the various challenges facing the nation and the cause of failure in the system.

“To gain admission, you have to know people and make some influence. Look at our roads, so much would be earmarked but one person will go away with it and nothing will happen. This is a wrong approach to apply laws,” he said.

Asaolu maintained that what the nation needs is strong institutions and a legal framework that can stand the test of time in fighting the menace of corruption in the country.